This invention is directed to a seat for a vehicle, such as an automobile or limousine, which allows for easy and safe ingress and egress of an elderly or handicapped person.
Conventional vehicular seats, such as those in conventional passenger automobiles, often are not suitably equipped to accommodate ingress and egress of elderly or handicapped persons, for whom there may be considerable difficulty in doing so. Vehicular seats are known that seek to address the needs of elderly and handicapped persons. Such seats include swivel seats that may consist, for example, of a simple vehicular seat that pivots about a vertical axis. Swivel seats may require a relatively large floor space within a vehicle, to allow for rotational and/or translational maneuvering of the seat as it transports a person in or out of the vehicle. As a result, the interior of vehicles carrying swivel seats and the like may be unsightly and appear to be specially made for handicapped persons. Maneuvering of a swivel seat between a deployed position facing the outside of the vehicle and a resting position (secure and ready for motion of the vehicle), may further require rotation of a person's body, which is undesirable for some elderly and/or handicapped persons. Swivel seats may also face forwardly away from the vehicle in their deployed position and/or expose less than the full seat, thus potentially requiring a wheelchair-ridden person to step forward before he/she can transfer to a wheelchair.
Other known seats made for handicapped or elderly persons may employ heavy lifting equipment that is costly, difficult to maintain, and limited to specific types of vehicles. Due to their relatively large size and weight, known seats of this type may be suitable for use only on large-sized vans or buses and not on passenger cars or limousines. Even when installed in large vans or buses, known seats of this type may limit the interior space available for other passengers and for interior features and are conspicuous and often unsightly thereby drawing attention to the handicap capability of the vehicle.
Other known handicap accessible vehicles permit a wheelchair or other device to be rolled directly into the vehicle with the passenger in the wheelchair or the like. While such vehicles are functional, they are not usually aesthetically engaging and draw attention to their function and/or passengers.